Zorra-Now-Fall 2025-WEB

TOWNSHIP DEPARTMENT INFORMATION TOWNSHIP DEPARTMENT INFORMATION 22 Zorra Now | Fall 2025 Zorra Now | Fall 2025 23 problem in Zorra. And in that respect, she’s similar to a majority of respondents to the University of Calgary study. “Nearly 80 per cent of respondents said harassment is either not a problem (39.6 per cent) or somewhat of a problem (38.3 per cent),” the study noted. “A much smaller proportion of local politicians said harassment is a big problem in their municipality (6.8 per cent).” Still, that doesn’t mean Finch didn’t feel targeted to a degree because she supported what turned out to be an unpopular vision of housing needs in Embro. In the days that followed the meeting, she was confronted by phone, email and in public, sometimes by people she had known all her life and had been on good terms with all her life. “I would be at one of my kid’s baseball games and there would be someone who wanted to pull me aside and have that conversation. Which is fine; I’m happy to have people express their concerns to me. But when it got a little more heated, I had to say, ‘I’m sorry, but this is not the place to have this discussion. Let’s set up a time when you can call me’.” With most of those people, it has since reverted back to being able to have fruitful and polite conversations. And Finch has been able to move on to support other initiatives and been able to connect with some of those same people in new ways – this time with common visions of how to move forward. Healthcare has been her passion for years and she found a way to incorporate that into her work as a councillor by working with Embro-area native Sherry Garner of Coffee Talk Theatre Productions to bring her “I am Enough” one-woman show to the village’s Olde Town Hall in April 2025. The show tackles mental health issues and Finch used the partnership to also organize a Friday- Saturday series of displays at the nearby Legion featuring information about various organizations and resources for those facing mental health issues. She admits running the program with Garner “was very good timing for me” because her daughter and niece had recently been in a vehicle collision, with her niece losing her life as a result. Finch says she’ll run again for Council in the fall of 2026. She’s inspired partly by achievements like the mental health support weekend but also, significantly, by Zorra Township Council’s continued participation in the annual Local Government Week celebrations in October – when schoolchildren visit the Township office and councillors and some staff visit the schools in the municipality. She remembers even before she was on Council, her daughter coming home from school excited from learning about what Township Council does during Local Government Week. “That was our dinner conversation that night.” So after being elected the previous fall, she was keen to attend her first Local Government Week session at Zorra Highland Public School in 2023. Finch remembers being thrilled when a couple of the kids said, “I know you. I’ve seen you at the park.” “It’s kind of neat for them to see me not just as a mom but as someone who’s a leader in the community.” Where Will the Courts Be Built? After reviewing several locations, the Committee originally proposed building the multi-use courts at the Thamesford District Recreation Centre. However, in Fall 2024, a new opportunity emerged: a parcel of parkland generously donated to the Township by Kingwood Development. NEW LOCATION: OFF BROCK STREET NEAR THE GEORGE STREET EXTENSION. This site will be part of a central, growing community hub—adjacent to a future elementary school, planned sports fields, and available parking—making it the ideal spot for recreation and community access. The ZMCC has officially endorsed this site as the preferred location. The Zorra Multi-Use Courts Committee, with the dedication of volunteers and community support since 2019, has officially reached its fundraising goal—special thanks to Chair Andrew Goodwin, Deputy Mayor Katie Grigg, and all committee members past and present. STAY UPDATED! Visit www.zorra.ca/our-township/committees or contact Sofia Caldwell, Manager of Recreation and Facilities, at scaldwell@zorra.ca. When Will Construction Begin? Before the courts can be built, important infrastructure and grading work must be completed within the new development. The Request for Proposal will be issued in 2026, with construction to follow. NOTE: This is a sample of what the Zorra multi-use project could look like and is not a visual of the actual project. ZORRA MULTI-USE COURTS COMMITTEE